Aftermath
by BadWolf829
Summary: The battle against Voldemort has been won, but what about the darkest battle of them all? The battle within yourself.


Malfoy Manor – June 5th, 1998

"Just a minute!" Draco sighed. His mum was knocking on the door for the third time in the 10 minutes he had been in the lavatory. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, his sleeves pulled up to his elbows and his hands resting on the edge of the sink. He looked with tired eyes at the face looking back at him. "What am I doing here?" he muttered to himself as he gently washed the blood from his forearm. This wasn't the first time he had tried to cut the dark mark off of his arm, but it was the first time that he hadn't taken any pain potions beforehand. He gasped as he wrapped his arm up and the deep cuts were forced back together. His nostrils flared as he rolled his sleeves down and he looked back into the mirror. Behind him, the marble floor seemed oddly shining; and in a moment the room turned sideways and he realized that he may be sick.

He imagined briefly of his father grabbing him by his hair and scolding him for being so careless. He thought of his mother crying. Why did she always cry? "She'll cry when she sees me" he thought, before he fell sideways to the cold marble below him. As his arm ached, he looked towards it and saw a puddle of deep red growing bigger onto his father's expensive floor. He smiled when he thought of Lucius' yells about the stain. He let out a muffled chuckle and breathed, "deeper than last time." And then suddenly he saw black.

He wasn't sure what happened next, because it happened in a nauseating blur. He saw witches and wizards he had never met before. He thought he might have seen a head full of familiar bushy brown hair which made him keenly aware of the sudden pulsing he could feel deep inside his belly. He saw darkness. He heard a murmuring of voices mixed with a ringing in his ears that seemed to be getting louder and louder. He moaned outwardly. His throat was dry and his tongue felt thick and slow. The ringing in his ears was reaching a peak. He felt his body shudder, and he fell into the void again.

St. Mungo's – June 6th, 1998

Draco's eyes fluttered open. The sound of mediwitches and wizards gently speaking outside his door made him shut them again. He could smell the stench of burned rosemary and KleanUpper potion and felt his stomach lurch. "Bloody hell" he muttered.

A small voice across the room jolted him upright and he had to hold his head in his hands for a few seconds to adjust to the new position.

"Bloody hell is right, Malfoy." Hermione Granger stood from her chair and walked to the foot of Draco's bed. "What were you thinking?" She whispered while gesturing to his bandaged arm.

Draco sneered, "What the bloody hell are you here for, you disgusting Mudblood?" His voice was thick and cracked when he spoke.

Hermione didn't waver at the question, despite her stomach flopping nauseatingly. She narrowed her gaze into his eyes and strongly announced: "I'm here because I promised I would be."

*flashback* Malfoy Manor – May 3rd, 1998

Draco awoke in his bed at Malfoy manor gasping for air. "NO!" He shouted into his empty bedroom. Narcissa burst into the room, looking worried. "What? What is it, love?" She asked in a strained voice while hurriedly looking about the room. "Mum, i'm fine. Go away." Draco stood out of bed and gathered up new clothes to change into. His mother stood slightly hunched over, clutching her hands together against her chest. Her eyes were red – she'd been crying. "Mother. I am going to shower now. Leave me." Draco's voice shook and he had to swallow the lump away that had formed in his throat.

The lavatory felt cold and big and Draco looked at his nakedness in the mirror. His eyes were sunken and he could see his ribs sticking out. With a heavy sadness, he brought his left forearm in front of his face and stared at it. Once Voldemort had been defeated for good, the remaining death eaters realized that they very well could be scarred for the rest of their lives. The marks on their arms faded, but a raised, red outline of the mark would stay. Only time would tell if the gruesome scars would heal completely.

With his other hand balled tightly into a fist, Draco stood skinny and naked. He blinked as hot tears spilled from his eyes and he began punching and pounding into the scar that he has been forced to wear.

*flashback continues* May 25th, 1998: Hogwarts Castle

The castle was in ruins. It was being rebuilt, very slowly of course, using both magic and muggle ways. Harry Potter had defeated Lord Voldemort. The war was over, but for many of the witches and wizards who were the soldiers, the darkest days still lie ahead.

Professor Mcgonagall walked through the corridors during her morning rounds. All of the professors had this duty to attend to. They each had several floors to walk through, to slowly pick up rubble and trash and clean the blood that was scattered about.

The students had returned to their homes immediately after the battle. The train took some of them, but many parents had shown up to take their children home themselves. Some parents swore they wouldn't be back for next semester. Some swore they'd be gone for just a little while to recuperate. Minerva promised them all that she would send an owl when classes were to resume.

As she walked into the library, Minerva spotted Hermione Granger levitating a bookshelf upright again. She sighed and tilted her head sideways as she spoke softly, as to not startle the witch whose back was facing her. "Ms Granger, I quite think we have this section covered. I thank you, of course. Why don't you rest?"

Hermione took a deep breath. "Professor, if you don't mind – I need to keep busy. I have nothing to go home to. I...I'd like to stay and help with the rebuilding so that we can start classes as soon as possible." Hermione stood tall, her voice strong and yet soft.

"Of course. Has Mr. Weasley and Mr. Potter made it back yet? I'm sure Molly is spoiling them both rotten." Minerva smirked.

Hermione let a small laugh out. "They've owled this morning and said they'd be a bit longer to return. I can't say I blame them. It's a right mess around here."

Minerva nodded knowingly. "It is. But, Ms. Granger – Hermione – I do believe that if you are up to it, your services are needed elsewhere. Both Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley will be needed when they return as well. I have asked several other witches and wizards for their help, too."

Hermione sat down in a broken chair and sighed. "Of course, Professor. How may I help?"

"With damage control. With helping those who are grieving, those who cannot come to terms with the events that have taken place." The older witch looked at Hermione through her spectacles. "Only of course, if you are up to it. Only if you yourself do not need such help?"

Hermione wasn't really sure what she needed. Maybe helping someone else could help her, too? She clenched her jaw for a moment and then said, "It will be good for me. And good for Harry, and Ron too."

Minerva smiled. "Wonderful. The wizard you have been assigned to help is Draco Malfoy. His mother has sent numerous owls to me since the battle and she is very concerned with how Draco is handling things. His father Lucius, whom I'm sure you know has been flagged and is under house arrest" she stopped for a moment to take a deep breath, "has taken to drinking heavily while he awaits his court hearing and, well..." Minerva sat down now, too. "Well, I can't imagine things are quite easy for Draco right now. There has been talk of him being charged for crimes, too."

Hermione let these words sink in for a moment. Help Draco? Was he even able to accept help? Was he redeemable? Did he want to be redeemed? She closed her eyes. Draco. He lied at Malfoy Manor and said he didn't know Harry. He stood next to her when Voldemort called out to him and she felt his hand twitch against hers. She didn't think much of it until now. His parents had coerced him to come to their side. THEIR side. Not his. Did Draco even get a choice after all?

Hermione stood up. "I'll do it, Professor. I promise I'll help Draco Malfoy."

*end flashback*


End file.
